Baby Birdie!

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Well, guess what? One of the eggs has hatched! I looked online to find out how long robin eggs take to hatch and discovered that it is 12 to 14 days. Today makes 14 days exactly since I first noticed the nest and one egg. Apparently robins lay one egg each day.

It looks as if one of the other eggs is cracked, so there should be another wee baby bird pretty soon.

Now, all we have to do is hope that the babies remain safe. The location of the nest isn't very safe at all.

Latest Adventures of the Nest

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I managed to take a photo which clearly shows the three eggs. The mama bird had flown off somewhere, so I was able to sneak out onto the deck and take the photo.

Well, the slight problem about this nest and the mama bird is that she gets mad if you go anywhere near the nest. I mean, even if you just step onto the deck from the dining room she'll come zooming up, screeching at you. If you try to do some yard work she does the same thing! Yikes!



How long will it be before the eggs hatch? How long after that before the baby birds fly away? There's so much work to be done in the backyard! And I don't want to upset the mama bird any more than is necessary.

Bird's Nest

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Here was I moaning that Spring had not quite arrived! Lo and behold, the other day I went down the steps from our deck to the backyard. Guess what I saw?

A beautiful bird's nest, complete with an equally beautiful egg.

The location of the nest isn't very secure, in my opinion, for any squirrel or cat can climb the steps and access the nest. And, since the mother bird was nowhere to be seen I assumed that the nest had perhaps been abandoned.

Not so. We were out of town for a few days, and when we got back, I sneaked a peek at the nest. Guess what I saw?! A mama bird sitting there quite peacefully. Well, she was peaceful until she noticed me. She flew off and yelled at me. Guess how many eggs there are now? Three! I wanted to take a photo of the three eggs, but with the mama bird being so upset, I quietly moved away so as not to disturb the nest.




Now, I've been wanting to take a photo of this nest for the past 24 hours. Just a few minutes ago I tip-toed out and took a picture of the nest with the mama bird sitting in it. She didn't mind. So, I ran inside to get my better camera and dashed out to the backyard to take another photo. Oops. The mama bird was furious! She flew away, yelling at the top of her lungs. I ran up the steps to the deck and managed to take a quick photo of the eggs. You can only see two of them.



I don't know how we're supposed to use the steps, or the deck, or the patio below, for that matter, whilst the mama bird is taking care of her nest. She'll be so upset anytime we're close to the nest. Even putting the cars in the garage could upset her.

Gosh. What to do?

Computer

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My laptop died quite unceremoniously, quite quietly. After three and a half years it was finished, caput. Just like that. I'd had problems with it crashing before, and two days before the warranty was up, the hard drive crashed completely. I got a new one free in the mail about one and a half years ago. And here was I expecting it to last longer! Call me a naive optimist!

Disconcerted by the blank screen and having unsuccessfully attempted to reinstall Windows Vista I finally accepted that this was indeed the end. Boo hoo. If that wasn't enough the desktop computer was on its last legs. I was on the verge of remaining computerless!

After researching and researching and researching some more I finally chose to postpone purchasing a new laptop, and instead to buy a new desktop computer.




Out with the old! Unhook cables and other preposterous items that seem to be covered in dust. And in with the new. Heck, might as well upgrade the printer as well, one that is wireless and contains a scanner and copier. Yeah!

Now all I have to do is figure out how all this new equipment works!

Five Signs You Know You're Ready for Spring...

Are you ready for spring? It's supposed to already be the spring here. Has to be the spring somewhere, doesn't it? But it aint here.

Here are five reasons you just know you're ready for spring.

1. You bought sunscreen - five tubes!

2. You purchased garden plants from QVC.

3. You put the snow shovel way, way, at the back of the garage.

4. You began to skip and do somersaults, forgetting that the lawn is covered in snow.

5. You heard birds sing, chirp merrily and you started to sing!

Very Puzzling Puzzles

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Guess what? It's now the second of April AND we still have winter weather! How could that be? We've had wet snow - whatever that means. Isn't snow always wet?! We're lucky to enter into the forties during the day. That, indeed is a puzzle. And it's one that the perennials and grass just don't understand. They're ready to be fertilised and pampered, not frozen over!




For all you jigsaw puzzle fans, I think you might like our games room. It's just full of jigsaw puzzles. Not that I do them. Puzzles are just too, well, puzzling. And I'm already still puzzling over what to have for dinner tonight, and whether to jump up and down to get some exercise or to go for a walk in the incessant cold weather.



That one above was too big for the table in the gamesroom, so it was done on top of a rug!




There are two puzzles here lying side by side on the table. And one isn't even the right way round! I call that a puzzle. How can anyone do a puzzle when it's turned the wrong way?



I may have solved one puzzle - instead of cooking dinner tonight I think we'll just get take away!

Hail in the Spring

Just when we were all dreaming that winter had blown itself away faraway, and that spring was flowing gently by, images of buds and flowers caressed our smiling faces. We could feel the soft rain bringing life back to the garden.



Were we fooled! The temperature dropped back down to below freezing.



Hail, as big as golf balls, pelted down. I wondered what was going rat a tat tat on my car's roof as I drove home! Made it home and stared in disbelief at the grass covered in large hail.

Now they're saying on the weather forecast that temperatures will continue to be below normal for the next few days!



I thought I saw a white plastic bag on our front lawn and asked hubby to pick it up when he went out to check the mail.

"That wasn't a plastic bag. It's ice!" He grimaced, shuddering in the cold.

Daffodils in the Spring

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Guess what?! The snow has all melted and the temperatures are around fifty degrees. So far so good!

Now what is awaiting lots of attention is the backyard. Need to clean it up, get rid of the leaves yet again, and fertilize it.




Guess another what?! Several years ago there were daffodils in the back yard, but, since they eventually no longer flowered I yanked them out of the ground and dumped them in the woods out back.





Each spring these poor, neglected, worn-out daffodils bloom! I didn't even plant them. I simply tossed them into the woods. Now, some did disintegrate along with the leaves we dump. But look, here are the ones that bloom every year.

Spring is here!!

Allergies and Spicy Foods.

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Lately I've been having a craving for spicy foods!

Indian chutney? This is just one of the chutneys I was able to find at our local supermarket.



Colman's English Mustard! Really quite piquant. A little goes a long way.

Mix it with this tasty Indian relish, and your sinuses are sure to clear!!



I have allergies just now -stuffed up nose, red eyes and a headache. Maybe that's why I'm craving these spicy- wicey foods!!

Good Things to Come and Cadbury

From warm, sunny weather in Florida and South Carolina, we're now back in the land of snow and more snow!

Yet, this week-end we change the clocks?! Doesn't that mean that Spring is not far behind?

Hmm. I guess the snow is melting a little. And, I heard some birds chirping. All good signs of the beginning of things that are good.

Another good sign? Cadbury's. Yes. I happened to see Cadbury's Chocolate Fingers in a shop not far from here. Never, ever had seen Cadbury's biscuits being sold here in the suburbs. Maybe that's another sign of the beginning of things that are good! Maybe they'll even begin selling Chocolate Eclairs, Crunchie, Cadbury's Flake...

Marsh Tacky Horse Race, Hilton Head Island, South Carolina

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Something nice about a road trip is finding unexpected events. Who would have thought that there would be a horse race on the beach at Hilton Head Island?! And who knew about the Marsh Tacky horse? Apparently they are an endangered species of horses.



The horses and their riders paraded along the beach as the crowds snapped dozens of photos.



The Marsh Tacky is small and works well in the marshlands of South Carolina. Despite their small size, they sure can run fast!



The rider above was one happy camper! I'm afraid, however, the race began with a terrible thud. One of the riders fell off her horse and landed hard on the sand. I don't think there was enough space after the finish line for the horses to come to a stop, so the riders had to turn them sharply. It was announced later that the rider who fell was okay.

Such excitement on the beach! And I thought cycling along the beautiful white sands was exciting!

What Were They Searching For?!

Down here in South Florida some odd things happen. Strangely shaped people wander around hoping to get a tan, hoping to regain their youth. Drivers are kind of odd as well. They either zoom along, pass you on the hard shoulder, or, they crawl along at twenty miles per hour! As for the action in the computer room, well, I tell you, delinquency, verging on anarchy so many times prevails. People are supposed to use the computer for just 15 minutes. Oh really?! You're not allowed to sit down if you're wearing a wet swimming suit? LOL!

To get back to the two women and the man who were crawling along on the ground. See previous post, in case you're just dying to know what I'm talking about. I had nothing better to do than practically fall off the balcony as I leant over watching the shenanigans below. One woman sprawling out underneath a bush, another woman appearing from nowhere who joins the first woman in this bizarre search. I guessed they were searching for something! Unfortunately, I couldn't hear the conversations.
Then, a man saunters by, and the next thing he too crouches down and almost disappears underneath the bushes.

Guess what they were all looking for?! The first woman let out a huge yell. "I found them!" She held them up in glee. Keys! I surmise they must have been her car keys. Yeah!!!

Searching

People do the oddest things at times. Especially when they're on vacation.

There I was seated on the balcony of our fourth floor condo. It was early evening and a balmy sixty five degrees in South Florida. Suddenly, I heard a lot of rustling and groans and moans. What was going on?

Having nothing better to do, I stood up and gazed over the balcony railing. What did I see? Some woman sprawled out on the grass. At first I thought she was drunk or dead. But then her hands and feet moved as she crawled about on the ground. She was obviously searching for something. And that something had to be important! Before I knew it she disappeared inside the bushes!

Then, another woman came along. Spoke to the first woman, and then she also got down on the ground and started searching inside the bushes. Golly gosh. So much excitement here in South Florida!

I waited with bated breath to see what would happen next. You won't believe it, but along came a man. Just sauntering around, probably making his way back home for the evening. Guess what? The next thing he sprawled down on the ground next to the two women. My goodness! What was going on?

You'll just have to wait until the next installment!